


sick thoughts

by Empress_Lulu



Category: Powerpuff Girls
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Chaptered, Complicated Relationships, F/M, Feelings Realization, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Mutual Pining, Pining, Post-Canon, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Smoking
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:53:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25028026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Empress_Lulu/pseuds/Empress_Lulu
Summary: The Greens have an unspoken bond that they don't bring up around anyone, not even themselves. However, when certain thoughts begin to creep in, this could cause trouble and conflict for them. Rated M for suggested s*xual content but nothing too explicit.
Relationships: Butch/Buttercup Utonium
Comments: 6
Kudos: 36





	1. look what you caused

A/N:Hello Reader, thank you for taking your time to click on this. This is my first work that I will be posting here on AO3, but I have already posted it on my own account on Fanfiction.net.

This work is inspired by a song of the same title found [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2DLQp66ukw). You may listen to it as you read this. This was initially planned to be a one-shot, but with how many ideas came flooding in during the process, this is now a chapter story. I look forward to your comments and reviews.

I do not own the characters or the song. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy.

* * *

It had been years since the girls had been students of Pokey Oaks Kindergarten. About 13 actually.

Buttercup quickly walked through the halls of Townsville University to get to her mandatory English class. Crowds of people were no challenge to her. The toughest fighter could always maneuver around them perfectly, whether it be by cutting through the grass or in emergency cases, flying. Blossom discouraged it, stating that at school they should try to be "regular University students" and not the Powerpuff Girls. It was obviously difficult since people had been able to recognize them no matter what they did. It also did not help that their main use of transportation to and from campus _was_ flight.

The 18-year-old superhero sighed in relief as she walked in the doors of the classroom, no professor in sight. Better yet, her seat had not been taken. She enjoyed sitting in the center near the back. It was easiest to focus if she was interested in the topic and if she wasn't, people wouldn't bother her there.

As she approached the seat coming from the front door, a taller figure stood in front of her, partly blocking the way to the chair. She didn't even have to look up, she could immediately recognize him by his intoxicating, familiar sent.

Musky cologne to hide the scent of sweat and cannabis smoke. The cologne itself smelled like a lush forest that any explorer could get lost in, a perfect match for his dark green eyes. Sweat would be from his regular morning workouts and any fights he happened to stumble into across the day, not excluding his fights with her. He only recently began smoking in high school, it was the best thing that helped to calm him down, besides one other thing. Underneath even all of that, a faint smell of a wet dewdrop morning was present to represent the snails that helped give him life.

"You're in the way Butch." An icy stare at his collarbone was her only answer. A deep chuckle resounded.

"What is it? What's so funny?" Buttercup spat out and looked into his eyes. She could feel an internal blush coming on but kept a strong poker face on the outside.

He could only smirk and sneer back at her. "I don't remember this chair having your name, Cupcake."

Her eye twitched in response. "I don't remember it having yours either fuckface," she said as she shot an icy glare into his eyes.

Butch tutted and feigned innocence, placing a hand on his chest. "Aww, that hurt Butterbabe-"

"Don't call me Butterbabe."

The distance was closing in on them as Butch stood firm underneath the pressure Buttercup was exerting throughout the classroom. The other students walking in made it an effort to stay away from their side of the classroom. The atmosphere was thicker than a bowl of oatmeal.

The silence between them broke as Butch leaned in closer to her face.

"You want your chair so bad?"

A suggestive whisper in his baritone that meant a lot more said his next words.

" _Make me move for it_."

After a minute of silence and the rest of the students being worried about whether a brawl was about to take up their class period, the Professor walks in, clearing their throat. Snapping out of their stare fest, Buttercup made haste and shoved Butch out of the way, taking a seat. Butch grumbling but not wanting to cause any issues, moves to sit next to Buttercup on her left side. Taking her backpack off and placing it on the floor, she opens it up and places her laptop on her desk and opens it, to give the illusion that she was working or paying attention.

Out of the rest of their siblings, they surprisingly had the most complicated relationship. Overall, they all still left a sour taste in each other's mouths, but the others were doing better progress.

Boomer and Bubbles were probably the closest of the six to being friends. They were paired up together for various classes and clubs back in high school and found out that they had a lot of similar interests. Over the years, simple pleasantries became genuine kindness, and the two worked very well together.

Brick and Blossom are still in the tolerance stage, as they did end up sharing many APs and dual enrollment classes, to which they later found out that for any forced group projects, they could always trust each other to complete their task. Oddly enough, rumors began to pop up about the two dating, with how much time they have had to spent on their large research project together. Their constant arguing however, consoled the rest that that was most likely not the case.

Butch and Buttercup though, had a more unique relationship. Just like the rest of them, all counterparts could feel a sense of closeness. A sense of completion or looking into the mirror, whether they liked it or not. They seemed to be the first to recognize this bond between them, both a blessing and a curse. In times when they need true understanding or consolation, the other would be there to listen. Whenever they needed to vent and scream everything out to the world, they were the perfect sparring partners. On rainy days when the only comfort they needed was each other's presence and calm breathing, the two would sit for hours in silence listening to music, the rain, and their heartbeats.

It was an unspoken solidarity between them. In the public eye, they would always be seen as opposites. Never as equals.

So why should they have to bring forward what they have and talk about it?

_We might just be unkind. But that's just how we're designed._

Class was proceeding as usual. Lectures and notes about proper essay writing and how to conduct research for the five-page paper at the end of the semester. Since the class was fairly linear about what material was taught and the syllabus and Blossom were both a great source of information, Buttercup's mind liked to wander a bit. This proved an issue to Buttercup, not because she actually cared about the class, but because of what typically awaited her in her daydreams.

It started out normal. Planned fights with Butch, using her brain as a tactical battlefield to figure out how to use some new moves or tricks on him. It was the easiest to use him as the tester since he could take the hits well and he didn't mind. For whatever reason though, the battle had the same outcome. Their chase would take them all the way to an abandoned home near the forest's edge. It was a very real place that only they knew about. It was their escape when they had to turn their back on the world, and a home for their darkest shadows.

Two bodies desperately grabbing for air against the floor, a small break that they take. Yes, they were superhuman, but sometimes it is important to place an emphasis on the human part. From a faraway glance, they passed off as human the best a lot of the time if it were not for their infamous reputations preceding them.

Suddenly, Buttercup rushes to pin Butch against one of the walls. She sits on top, straddling him down, roughly grabbing his wrists and throwing them above his head, leaving him vulnerable. Bloodthirsty peridots gaze into dark emeralds until the thirst changed into something that could not be satiated by a simple punch.

With no hesitation between the two of them, Buttercup moved her lips towards his, and Butch was quick to reciprocate.

His arms broke free from her break, but she didn't care, as she promptly moved to occupy her fingers to run through his surprisingly soft black spiky locks. He made kick work of his freedom and used his larger hands to roughly pull her even closer to him, fingers quickly running down the hem of her shirt and up her bare back, wanting to feel the sweat of their bout and their kiss.

" _..cup.."_

Fires bore into each other's eyes as they continued to make each other sweat and pant more than any other battle had. Fingers search hungrily for any kind of contact. Her fingers continued to pull at his locks, waving the hair around to make it look even messier. Sweat from the battle trickled down his face, which made her fingertips wet as well. He could only grasp harder into her skin, trying not to release a cry of combined pain and relief from the kiss.

" _..ttercup?..."_

They had always left bruises on each other; they were the only ones that could. No one else was strong enough or had enough balls to. No one else knew Butch's weak points like she did, nor did anyone know her weak points like he did. Her eyes wandered to his collarbone, one of his points. It was easy to shatter one and place the person into shock. A very sensitive place in general. She knew he did not mind the bruises on his body, so what harm could one more bring?

" _..ello?...arth to"_

During the passion of the moment, she began to truly ponder about the man in front of her. Her opposite and her equal. Butch's sharp features and defined muscles gave him the look of an Adonis. Whenever he flexed anything, his veins gave the appearance of being carved into like a statue of Donatello. A chiseled jawline and sharp canines that reminded her that he was just as inhumane as she was.

An irresistible person whom she thought to be the most attractive person on earth. No wonder why Aphrodite had to have him despite his mortality.

_"…listening to me?..."_

One final rough bite against his bottom lip. Her lips began to travel down from the corner of his lips to his cheek, past his jawline, down to his neck. Finally, she captured her eyes upon her prey, her teeth about to sink him and-

"BUTTERCUP UTONIUM! CLASS JUST ENDED 7 MINUTES AGO AND WE HAVE TO GET TO OUR NEXT CLASS!"

Her eyes opened wide to the empty classroom besides her classmate Vivi, whom she shared this class and the next with. The pair had a Lab class next, and since they were generally more of a chore with less lab partners present, Vivi made it almost her job to make sure Buttercup wouldn't skip the next class.

With a loud sigh and a grumble, Buttercup began to quickly shuffle her things into her backpack and sat up from her seat, walking out the back door with Vivi. As they began to make their way to class, she swore that she saw a brief glimpse of him in the corner of her eye, almost as if he was waiting to confront her about what she thought about.

"Buttercup?"

"Huh? Oh. Yeah. Sorry." Vivi looked towards her with mild concern. Buttercup sighed and brushed away her worries. "I'm okay. Let's go." With a simple nod, the two continued on their way to the next class, her daydream still mildly distracting her in her subconscious, as it always did.

_You got me so fucked up._

Buttercup was typically quiet in class, but she was never that quiet. She always knew better to have an eye out for anything to happen, even if one of those things happened to be him. Butch sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, his thoughts of Buttercup swarming in during his humanities lecture. The day Buttercup dozed off today was _different_ , something was off about her to the point where he stayed behind for a bit, hoping that she would eventually leave the classroom. He did not want to show or admit his concern for her though, he just wanted to make sure that she would show up to their sparring session later.

As the professor continued to lecture about Ancient Greece and the schools of education, a picture from the lecture resounded in his mind. It was a painting of the goddess Athena. Her body was facing the viewer, but she turned her head towards her right where an owl perched. The left side of her body had a shield with a carving of the head of Medusa leaning on her, her left hand calmly resting atop. These details were not what captured Butch's attention though, it was her dark hair. The way that the gray clouds behind her almost resembled smoke, yet she stayed calm and picture perfect.

The dark hair of the goddess reminded him of another powerful dark-haired woman. If they were real, Butch might have been smitten down where he sat at his next thought: the Greek beauty had nothing on Buttercup. The two had many similarities: they were both a force to be recognized with and commanded great respect during times of battle, but Buttercup had so much more going for her.

Citrus perfume and the mild sweat made her smell of limes, followed by a lingering smell of leather from her jackets and to complete the set, the faintest smell of earthy spices. How in battle, her speed in battle could only be matched by Butch's defense. Their attacks colliding at each other as a barrage of blows or calculating strikes. Getting gut punched was one of the best and worst feelings in the world for him. Her kicks her were more deadly though, able to send him flying farther than any rocket could send someone to space and back.

Another image flashed by on the board, the ruins of Temple of Athena Nike. A strong building that has stood the test of time, only some damage to the building over the years, but nothing too severe. It's astounding that even a building could remind him about Buttercup. Arms holding up 30 ton monsters resembling powerful pillars while her legs were an unshakeable foundation that kept her grounded. Eyes brighter than any gemstone, weapon, or armor. Green embers that could never be put out, not even by Poseidon's stormy seas.

A buzz from his lap brought him back to the real world. It was a text from Boomer.

**Dude, when are you bringing over the barbecue chicken wings? You promised and I'm starvinggggg.**

As he looked around and began to collect his things in a grumble, he noticed that the lecture hall was empty. When he looked back at the time on his phone, it had already been 10 minutes past since class ended. People probably thought he was asleep and left him alone.

**Bro hello? Brick is gonna kick your ass if you don't get here soon.**

_**Oh shut up and keep it in your pants. I'll be right there.** _

Throwing his backpack on, he shoved his phone in his right pocket again, burying his face in his hands as he flew out the classroom.

"Shit."

_Think about you most of the time. Then I think about losing my mind._


	2. you got em' too

A/N: My apologies for the longer chapter this time around, even with such a length I still had to cut it off. However, to make up for it, the next chapter will be coming soon.

I genuinely appreciate each and everyone of you. I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

* * *

College had become a part of her mundane life. Well, as mundane as life could be for a Powerpuff Girl.

It had become a part Buttercup's normal for months now. However, because she kept receiving intrusive thoughts about someone, college had become more of a taunting prison.

She would have to see his distracting figure every day. His shadow would haunt the halls, his reflection would be caught in her peripheral vision. She swore she could feel his presence _everywhere_.

Buttercup didn't really have an extracurricular or any reason to stay behind on campus, sometimes she enjoyed staying there because it wasn't home. Now, she didn't think twice about leaving after class to return to the comfort of her dark room.

She would be there for hours, scrolling on her phone through social media, headphones plugged in listening to anything that could keep her from the clutches of those _sick_ thoughts. The only time she would occasionally get up was to go to the bathroom, get some food, or turn in some assignment last minute.

The alarm clock in bright green numbers flashed 1:35 am. _'Damn, it had already been this late?'_

Alongside quick trips and dark rooms, restless nights sadly also became part of her mundane. A concern rose in her head, _What if those thoughts began to invade her dreams?_ There was no way she could risk that possibility, especially not knowing how worse it could get then.

She began to nod off a little bit, her clear exhaustion getting to the better of her, until a repeated _tap tap tap_ knocked at her window.

Buttercup shot up and looked towards the window, beginning to speculate a bit at who it could be. Blossom was most likely finishing up studying in her room as midterm season was approaching very soon. Bubbles was already in bed sleeping calmly, having finalized her skincare routine ages ago. The only contender left could be…

Oh no.

_Tap Tap Tap_

She knew she couldn't ignore him, his powers allowed him to see the occasional flickering light of her phone light and obviously, her still awake in bed. With a sigh, the green puff floated up from her bed, grabbed her discarded green flannel shirt on her desk chair, and threw it on sparingly. Looking down at her choice of pajamas, a simple mint tank top with spaghetti straps and black shorts with the white stripe on the side, she gulped. A soft look of embarrassment appeared on her face. All she could hope now is that he would not notice her appearance too much.

Blackout curtains were parted like the seas and surely there he was. Butch Jojo, floating in front of her window.

"Can I come in?" His muffled voice called out from the outside.

Buttercup could only nod her head and open the window, stepping back as the tall figure landed softly in her dark room. Even in the dark, his attire was recognizable: grey sweatpants, dirty black converse, and a baggy green hoodie with that stupid black stripe in the center.

"Look, Buttercup, I know you've been avoiding me-"

"You have five minutes to explain why you're here then." She quipped back in a hushed whisper, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "You know you're not allowed to be here. My sisters and the Professor would freak out."

Butch sighed softly, his right arm reaching for the back of his head to ruffle his already messy hair. The pitch blackness of the room did not help the moonlight that hit him and his figure so nicely. Buttercup could feel herself trying to hold back from biting her lip.

'Well?" She called out in mild desperation, hoping he would leave soon. His presence is just way too distracting, it's not even fair. "Did you come for a fight or help with homework or something?"

"I- no. Listen Buttercup, I've been thinking about the reason why you could be avoiding me. I know we don't really like to talk about…" His hands make a gesture towards the both of them. "Us."

Buttercup nods her head in understanding and agreement. Internally, she was screaming.

"But, after giving it some more thought," He looked down at the floor, eyeing his hands as he aggressively gripped them. "I just… FUCK." Fists went flying to his sides, a gradual frustration grew on his face. His left eye even began to twitch a bit. He only really did that when he was really bothered by something.

"Fuck Buttercup… you're making this hard for me. You know I'm shitty with words, can I just…do something? Can you trust me?"

He approached her with every word and every breath he spoke. Buttercup could only gradually retreat until she stopped. _'Excuse you? Buttercup, get your shit together, you're THE toughest fighter. This is just Butch. Anything he can throw at you, you can take it.'_

The green puff stood her ground until he towered directly above her. A scowl soon crossed her face, she always did dislike their height difference.

"Make it quick, I don't have all-"

Butch's face leaned in quick, there was no time to react. His lips were firmly pressed against hers.

Their connection was so powerful, no words were spoken between them as they moved. Buttercup took the initiative, moving him towards the bed using her flight as an aid. Butch easily complied without any hesitation, placing his hands in between her waist and hips.

As the back of his knees hit the bed, she brought her knees forward, bringing her legs around his frame to be landed in a straddle. Her flannel was slightly slipping to her shoulder, but she paid no attention to it.

So many thoughts ran in her head. How wrong this was, but how right it felt. This was her first kiss in a very long time, but it felt as if she had been kissing him since forever.

Suddenly, she could feel his hand moving out from his hold on her, as it was now warmly on her cheek. Buttercup could feel Butch break the kiss off, which begrudgingly gets her to open her eyes. She meets his forest green eyes with a hint of mischief and a wicked smirk on his face. It's almost as if he was beaming.

"Well, well, well, I didn't expect such a plea-"

"Shut the fuck up and keep kissing me."

Horror shook to her core internally at what she said out loud, yet at the same time, she could not give a fuck anymore. Butch only laughed casually, throwing his head back and allowing his toothy grin be illuminated by the moonlight.

"Yes m'am! Anything for you, my goddess~" He said against her lips and brought her into another heated kiss before she could protest against the nickname. Their hands began to move on their own, going to where it just felt _right_. All the guilt in Buttercup's thoughts soon began to melt away. She had never been so sure in her life that this is exactly what she wanted, _what she needed_.

Time could not even dare to interrupt or face them. What was only a couple of minutes felt like hours, days, infinity. The way his hands caressed against her back or the way her fingers pulled softly at his hair, everything felt so complete.

Butch's anticipation for something more than just kissing could be felt by his rougher kisses and almost desperate grabs at her back. "Buttercup.." He took a breath as he continued, "I'm going to do more. Just warning you now." A simple nod was his permission as his hand trailed under her sweater and shirt to feel her bare skin. A slightly loud "EEP" erupted from her mouth. She didn't expect such quick movement, nor such cold hands.

The callouses in his palm from their battles could be felt softly trailing against her back until his hand traveled to the front of her shirt. She could only hold her breath in fear and anticipation, but another kiss helped ease her mind. His fingers were slender and his hands were surprisingly large. Buttercup can almost feel the embarrassment rush to her face when his hand was able to envelop her entire breast perfectly.

Suddenly, they could hear footsteps in the hallway. They were too soft to be the professor, but not too secure and steady to be Blossom.

"Shit." She just let it slip out naturally.

Out of anyone who could catch her tonight, it had to be Bubbles.

Despite Buttercup looking at the door in horror, Butch was completely unfazed and continued his work, moving his lips to her neck and collarbone.

"W-wait a sec you perverted asshole! Can you stop?! I don't want to get caught like this!" She whispered aggressively, but she could only feel a toothy smirk in return. He did stop moving, but he did not remove his hand from underneath her shirt. He kept his lips at her neck, waiting for an answer.

"You say that now because you don't want to get seen, but you don't to actually stop..do you?"

Buttercup could only snarl a bit as her blush returned. He was right. That bastard.

"N-no.."

"Are you sure?" He whispered huskily in her ear, his warm breath and his smell was too intoxicating. "I won't continue until you give me the okay, Cupcake."

"D-Don't stop okay asshole!" She seethed out. "P-Please don't stop.."

He resumed his work with a dark chuckle and a nod, which only let another squeak out of the poor girl. Buttercup's right hand quickly covered her mouth, trying to focus on listening to her sister outside the door. Hearing the footsteps back track to her own room after a little while, Buttercup let out both a sigh of relief and pleasure.

Is this how Psyche felt? How much fear, how much excitement did she have bubbling up inside of her, knowing a potential monster could be doing all of this in the name of marriage?

Buttercup had been luckier than the young human girl. The man who was making her feel like she could fly farther and feel any more ecstasy imaginable did not have demon horns or razor-sharp claws. The boy might have had sharp teeth and more power than anyone could ever imagine, but she could also see his beautiful wings as his cupid's bow lay perfectly on his lips.

Speaking of which, she moved her hands from her face and his head and cupped his cheeks, pulling him in for another kiss. His hypnotic orbs were the last thing she seen before she allowed herself to be captured by the darkness again.

_I wanna stop before we're caught…_

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

Rampant vibrations and a loud ringtone made the girl shoot up quickly. As her bright green eyes observed the room in full, she realized a couple of things. First off, the blackout curtains were still closed, leaving the room to still be pitch black. Using her super vision, she could notice her hoodie was still on her chair, right where she left it. The alarm clock brightly read 3:20 AM, it had only been about two hours since she last laid eyes upon the clock. Finally, the most obvious observation was that there was no evidence whatsoever of Butch ever entering her room and doing any of those things with her.

It was all just a dream.

A groan escaped her lips as she grabbed her phone to see what notification she should thank or hate for awakening her from her dream.

' _Ah. Just a couple of snaps and comic notifications. Lame.'_

She rolled her eyes at her phone as she tossed it softly a couple of inches from her, letting another groan escape her lips as she buried her face in her hands. Trying to cope in daydreams in class was one thing, but that? That was pure torture.

She faced the direction of the window, blackout curtains still in the way of her view. Floating upwards from her bed, she lazily opened the curtains, allowing the moonlight in momentarily. Buttercup stood there for a while, taking in the new light and relaxing. Her mind quickly wandered to her dream which only invited another scowl on her face. Turning back to face her room, Buttercup grabbed her flannel shirt and actually put it on this time, grabbing her blankie from her bed as she left her phone. She opened the window softly with a sigh and flew outside, hoping that some time alone and outside of her bedroom could help give her a clear head.

… _but don't stop, don't stop, don't stop._

Butch never thought that the day he would be clean would ever come. He felt in soul with full confidence that he and his brothers were nothing but pure evil, created only to be vessels of chaos, destruction, and disorder.

All of that changed when middle school happened.

He and his brothers were begrudgingly forced to go to school, but thanks to Mojo's continual ranting, they were able to join the regular public school system at the age they were supposed to be. They were also forced into promising to be "good" or at least, not commit any crimes on campus or during school hours. He and his brothers interpreted it as "skip school and don't get caught."

They did get caught though.

A lot.

The consequences weren't pretty.

Besides having to attend classes, the trio were forced to be seated in the cafeteria under adult supervision, do some community service hours by helping to clean up some of their own messes, and staying longer after school to help out clubs with manual labor.

It's best to say in a short summary that 6th grade was probably the worst year for the Rowdyruff boys. Yet, it was also the year they learned a lot.

When they came back to school the next year, they had slowly received some of their freedoms back. However unlike last time, they did not take advantage of their newly earned privileged. Brick kept complaining about not wanting to have to see Blossom after school every time he had to help clean the science labs and Boomer wanted to at least have the chance to tryout a club or a sport. Butch wasn't like his brothers in either sense.

He hated cleaning just as much as the next guy did but he got used to it after a while. He became indifferent towards it. He also couldn't see himself participating in a club or a sport though. Clubs required him to stay after for longer periods of time than expected, and he couldn't fully let himself go during sports because then he would be giving the school's team "an unfair advantage."

That's why he loved PE so much.

PE was really the only class where he could let go easily and get away with it. He wasn't always fighting someone head to head. A lot of times, the exercises and tests were to see who was the best. What was your highest score? Your fastest rate? How far could you run? How long was your jump?

The green rowdyruff had never been more at home. Of course it would make sense his counterpart was the same way.

One day during a co-ed class, he noticed he kept getting distracted by a certain figure. The two groups were playing indoor basketball, but were divided by sex on the court. Although he was basically carrying his team the entire game, he couldn't help but notice whenever a bright green shirt flickered and danced in the corner of his eye.

The way she moved around the court was different in battle. Her competitive nature and fierceness was still present in her play, but she seemed almost more agile, level headed.

Butch has never seen Buttercup be so in her element before.

Being the most athletic of the three sisters, it was only natural that sports came easy to her. However, Butch argued in his head in that moment that it came it little _too_ easy. The other girls were nothing to sweat at when they played either, but Buttercup felt like a whole different breed of talent.

That was probably the first time he came up with another reason in the back of his mind to keep seeing her.

To keep egging her on for fights. To keep coming to school.

Just like how she made middle school and high school tolerable, seeing Buttercup made waking up for college absolutely worth it. The way her hair swooped in the air as she ran by, the way she scrunches her nose up when she's displeased. How she always picked the best chocolate milk cartons from school cafeteria

However, the thing he began to love and reminisce on the most were his bruises. Being creatures of Chemical X, these marks never stayed on for so long, nor could they be easily earned by just anything like a regular person could. However, whenever one Chemical X person hits another, there's a better chance for it to stick around just a bit longer.

Butch was just coming home from another regular day at college, expect it wasn't. He noticed that Buttercup had been recently avoiding him worse than she avoids spiders.

It honestly kind of hurt.

Didn't hurt as good as the bruise.

The bruise itself, placed neatly on the right side of his torso next to his abs, was starting to heal a little _too_ quickly for his liking. So, he would make sure to try and worsen it himself, so that he could keep it for a little longer. A nice blotch of blue and purple, obviously his attempts from days before, were momentarily marked with red as he pressed his thumb down hard on it. Unless he wasn't paying attention to them, his bruises barely ever get to green, yellow, or brown. He always made sure they looked fresh.

Admiring his counterpart's masterpiece of broken blood vessels on his skin became a part of his routine before hopping into his shower. At times, he wouldn't notice, but minutes would pass and one of his brothers would come knocking for the toilet. In a grumble as he would be interrupted, he would tell them to fuck off in hopes of being able to keep observing the piece of work he had the pleasure of being a canvas of.

_And I got things that I want…_

He wasn't interrupted tonight though, and after he deemed that he could keep looking at it after he was clean, he hopped into the shower and started the water. Reaching for the soap, the boy began to scrub himself, his spiky locks messily sticking down to his head from the running water above him. His shower thoughts began as the steam from the hot water encapsulated the bathroom.

The battle in which Buttercup parted him this gift with was another day like any other for them. He made a passing comment that clearly upset her and he just kept talking to get a rise out of her. A fist would reach out to make its mark but miss, and then the chase all over Townsville would ensue. Their flight would take them jumping from one company building to another, sky scraper after sky scraper. Past Mojo's lair, taking a couple of breaks near the school, through the lush forests, and nearly avoiding diving first into city hall. Their siblings initially tried to stop the charade after a while, but they could never keep with with their energy. They were just always on a different wavelength from everyone else.

Well that or there was the fact that the others had clubs and actual lives to attend to outside of fighting.

But not them.

His laughter could be heard on the wind as he would say more things to get her right where he wanted her to be, pushing her buttons like if he was toddler playing with his favorite toy. After a struggle and power exchange happened between the two, Buttercup always landed in the same position when he knows she's won, straddling his torso with an infuriated look on her face. This of course, did not come without a barrage of fists and curses.

Sometimes, and although he doesn't like to admit it, Butch wishes that instead of letting her hit him in battle for those _sweet_ bruises, he would do something more. He could catch her fists instead and bring her in for a well-deserved kiss. The position was already perfect, all he really would have to do was sit up and she would slide down to his hips. His arm would be reaching out to bring her in closer, his fingers caught in her black locks in a fist as he pulled her closer, hoping that she would be reciprocating the kiss…

_'...Wait what'_

Butch's eyes widened in shock as he dropped the soap in realization.

"What the fuck..." He whispered to himself. "Me?! Thinking about that crazy bitch like that?!"

Picking the soap back up, he rinsed off whatever soapy remains left on his hair and body and quickly scampered out of the shower. After he grabbed a towel and wrapped it securely around his waist, he leaned into his reflection to look into his own eyes. His body dripped with water everywhere, and he was most likely going to be yelled at if he didn't clean the mess up sooner or later. His fingers lowered his eyelids to really inspect what was going on...

Biologically, he was fine.

Another groan escaped him as his right hand brushed itself through the moppy wet hair. Maybe he just needed some time with himself and Ms. MJ. Appointment with her always helped clear his head and not think about the unwanted.

Butch reaches over to the shower head and turned the water off, moving back to inspect himself in the mirror. He could probably admit to himself that she was more gorgeous than anything on the planet, but he didn't like to admit that. The more he realized that fact, the more he also realized that he had no rights in having her. Her beauty, her aura, her presence, her grace, she was more fiery and deadlier than the sun, and nothing could possible ever match to her. He was nothing but an ugly, bellowing monster below who had been cursed to a vile form forever for crimes.

Or, a stupid Icarus who's been lucky that he hasn't gotten burned yet.

As his thoughts wandered about things that burned, there was something else he would rather have on fire and calmly inhale at. With one last breath at his reflection, Butch opened the door and let the steam out of the bathroom, floating back to his room still soaking wet mind you. He passed by his Simian father and heard a scolding about "How dangerous it can be because I, the Great Mojo Jojo, almost slipped worse than I could have on a banana peel," but Butch only brushed it off with a wave of his hand as he kept moving forward.

When he finally arrived to his room, he was quick to dry himself with his towel and throw on whatever was around and smelled clean enough. It's not like he was going to a party or anything and besides, the smell of his favored plant always made his clothes stink bad. It was probably better to pick something decent smelling enough that was about to go in the wash anyways. He ended up settling for some navy ripped jeans, black work boots, and a simple black shirt.

When he was about to leave the room, he stopped in place and quickly patted his hands around his pockets. He didn't have anything on him in these clothes.

"Ah ah ah, I knew I was forgetting something."

The boy floated over to his drawer and opened it up to reveal a simple book. When he opened the book, there was his stash. He had already prepped some joints for tonight earlier in the evening when he got home, but decided to bring just a little bit more, just in case. Now having everything he truly needed, he double checked his door, making sure it was locked so no one would coming snooping around. After he was sure he had everything this time, baggie in hand, he approached the window.

Just as the window was slammed open, a harsh cold breeze invaded his room.

"FUCK BRO! Shit…"

Despite being a super powered teen, being wet and stepping out into the freezing weather would get anyone sick easily. With how poorly Butch dried himself off, water still semi-dripping from his hair, he wasn't going to risk catching a cold. So with one final look around the room, he grabbed his green Letterman varsity and shoved the zip-lock baggie in the inner pocket. Without looking back as he started to hear Mojo's protests get closer and closer to his bedroom door, Butch got out, slightly closed his window, and flew off into the cold night. His dark green streak being the only trail of evidence left behind.

_But you're on top, on top, on top…_


End file.
